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Making sloppy joes in the Crock Pot means they’re ready when you are! Ground beef in a quick zesty sauce is a favorite piled high on rolls. Bring lots of napkins for all that sloppy goodness!
Holly’s Recipe Highlights
- Flavor: Skip the can of Manwich, homemade Sloppy Joes are sweet, spicy, and tangy, with the perfect texture of ground beef and aromatic veggies.
- Skill Level: This recipe is so easy to prepare! Mix the browned beef with all the other ingredients in the crockpot, cover, and let it simmer all day so it’s ready when you are.
- Recommended Tools: A crockpot or slow cooker is an invaluable must-have for everything from easy family meals to large gatherings.
- Budget Tip: Add cooked rice or beans to stretch the recipe further.
- Serving Suggestion: Serve crock pot sloppy joes with homemade potato salad or coleslaw. Either on the side (or on the top)!
Ingredient Tips for Sloppy Joes
- Ground Beef: Use ground beef, turkey, chicken, or add some chorizo or sausage to the ground beef in Step 1 to make spicy joes!
- Sauce: Homemade sloppy joe sauce has a base a of ketchup, tomato paste, and brown sugar. Vinegar adds tang, and chili sauce is the secret to a bold, zesty finish.
- Veggies: Onion, bell pepper, and celery add flavor and texture. Short on time? Skip the chopping and use a mirepoix (carrot, celery, onion) mix from the produce section.
- Buns: Choose hamburger buns or other hearty rolls to hold up to the sloppy filling. A crusty baguette can be divided into sections and sliced in half.
Change It Up!
- Flavor Boosters: Add extras like sliced mushrooms, hot sauce, black olives, chopped green chilis, or jalapenos.
- Keep it clean: Make Tidy Josephs by poking a hole in dinner rolls and filling the cavity with sloppy joe mixture.
- Get toasty: Add some extra flavor—toast the buns with a bit of garlic butter.
Leftover Love
Store leftover sloppy joes in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat portions on the stove or in the microwave.
Freeze in zippered bags and thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Use leftover sloppy joe sauce as a topping for baked potatoes with cheese and sour cream, or on nachos.
More Crock Pot Crowd Pleasers
Did your family love these Crock Pot Sloppy Joes? Leave a comment and rating below.
Crock Pot Sloppy Joes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 large onion chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup ketchup
- ⅓ cup chili sauce
- 1 ½ cups diced green bell pepper
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 ½ tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 3 tablespoons yellow mustard
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- rolls or buns, for serving
Instructions
- In a skillet on the stovetop, brown the ground beef with onion and garlic until no pink remains. Drain any fat.
- Place beef mixture in a 4 qt slow cooker. Add ketchup, chili sauce, bell pepper, celery, brown sugar, tomato paste, mustard, vinegar, Worcestershire. and chili powder and stir to combine.
- Cook on low 6-7 hours or high 3-4 hours.
- Serve over rolls or slider buns.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dinner
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This was really good. My husband even said it tasted gourmet (and I thought to myself, meatloaf…gourmet? Really?) But it really is fantastic. The only thing I would do different next time is cut down on the apple cider vinegar as I thought it stood out a little too much. Maybe 1T vs 2T? But a good, solid grub meal and I will definitely be making it again.
I made this for my husband and he really liked it. The only modification I made was to use real chili sauce – the Huy Fong brand. I find it odd that the Heinz “chili sauce” doesn’t have any actual chilies and is just ketchup and high-fructose corn syrup, which I avoid whenever possible. I also used twice as much tomato paste since I was short on ketchup and Worcestershire sauce.
Love your recipe for sloppy joes ! It’s a winner and super easy to make!